The State Government has frozen the order granting permission to Tamil Nadu to fell trees for strengthening the baby dam at Mullaperiyar.
The order goes against the declared stand of the State Government that a new dam should be constructed in place of the ageing one. The new order freezing the permission should be sent to all those who were given the copy of the earlier order allowing axing of trees, Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran said here on Sunday.
The order allowing Tamil Nadu to cut the trees had caught the State Government off guard. It was reportedly after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin expressed his gratitude to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for allowing one of the long-standing demands of Tamil Nadu that the Kerala Government came to know about the permission.
“I understand that the Kerala Chief Minister came to know about the issue when he received a thanksgiving note from Mr. Stalin,” Mr. Saseendran told media persons in Kochi.
“To the best of my knowledge, neither the Chief Minister nor his office was in the know of things. The Chief Minister, who was briefed about the developments, suggested that the issue should be handled carefully,” Mr. Saseendran said.
The controversy over the order is likely to resonate in the Assembly on Monday.
The Opposition parties will up the ante against the Government. KPCC president K. Sudhakaran called for a judicial probe into the incident.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Saseendran sought an explanation from the Chief Wildlife Warden, Kerala, who had issued the permission for tree felling. The official stated that he had only implemented the decision taken at a meeting convened by Additional Chief Secretary T.K. Jose following an earlier direction from the Supreme Court.
“Even if the decision was taken following the court order, the matter should have been discussed with the State Government, given the nature of the issue involved. As a first step, the Government has frozen the permission. The other steps, including a probe or action against the erring officials, will be taken later,” Mr. Saseendran said.
